Meat-holding mechanism for slicing-machines.



H. STEPHENSON & J. L. HOWARD.

MEAT HOLDING MECHANISM FOR SLICING MACHINES.

APPLICATION FILED APR.I0.19I5.

Patented Jan. 11, 1916.

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HOWARD STEPHENSON AND JOSEPH L. HOWARD, OF BRANTFORD, ONTARIO, CANADA,ASSIG-NORS TO BRANTFORD COMPUTING SCALE COMPANY, LIMITED, OF BRANTFORD,

CANADA.

MEAT-HOLDING MECHANISM FOR SLICING-MACHINES.

Application filed April 10, 1915.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, HOWARD STEPHEN- SON and J osnrrr LYONS HOWARD, ofthe city of Brantford, in the county of Brant, Province of Ontario,Canada, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Meat-Holding Mechanism for Slicing-Machines, of which the following is aspecification.

This invention relates to slicing machines in which a movable carriageis reciprocated parallel to a rotating knife, on which carriage the foodto be sliced is supported and held on a laterally movable slide, andourobject is to devise simple and effective mechanism for supporting themeat and for securely holding the ends of the pieces which have beensliced down too small to rest in a stable condition on the slide of thecarriage.

We attain our object by providing a special gripping head which may bedetachably supported on the slide, which head is provided with aplurality of arc shaped gripping prongs which operate through holes inthe head in reverse directions to grip the meat, substantially ashereinbefore more specifically described and illustrated in theaccompanying drawings in which- Figure 1 is a plan view of a slicingmachine provided with our improved holding mechanism; Fig. 2 a frontView of the holder and its supports; and Fig. 3 a ver means therefor.

tical section of the holder.

In the drawings like numerals of reference indicate corresponding partsin the different figures.

Referring particularly to Fig.1, 1 is the frame of the slicingmachineprovided with guides 2 on which the carriage 3 may be reciprocatedparallel to the rotary knife 4.

5 is the fly wheel which is rotated by the operator. The connectionsfrom the fly wheel shaft whereby the carriage is reciprocated and kniferotated are not shown, as these form no part of the present invention.On the carriage 3 the slide 6 is transversely movable in the guides 7.The carriage sup ports the feed mechanism and the operating These areshown but not described, as they form no part of this invention.

12 is a head formed as a casing. In the head 12 are journaled aplurality of parallel Specification of Letters Patent.

' which Patented J an. 11, 1916. Serial No. 20,571.

transverse shafts 13, which are connected by gear wheels 14 so thatalternate shafts may be given a rotary oscillating movement in oppositedirections. Each shaft carries a se- 'ries of gripping prongs 15, theupper ends of are arc-shaped, the arcs being struck on circles havingtheir centers in the axes of the shafts. By the movement of the shafts,these prongs may be thus projected through certain holes in the front ofthe head, their points subsequentl recurving to reach or enter otherholes f hrmed in the front of the head. The holes, it will be seen onreference, particularly to Fig. 2, are arranged in pairs of rows, theholes of adjoining rows alternating with one another. We thus secure aseries of gripping prongs operating in alternate rows in oppositedirections, and these we find very effectively grip and hold the meat.

An important result follows from the arcshaped arrangement of thegripping prongs, that is, the prongs at no time pro ect away fartherfrom the head than they do when moved to their limit to grip the meat.Thus there is no likelihood of the knife hitting the prongs if the userhas inadvertently failed to move the prongs to their limit when engagingthem with a piece of meat as sometimes happens with some of the olderconstructions.

The head is provided with a handle 16 and extended '1ugs'17 providedwith elongated slots 18 adapted to pass overthe ratchet rack bars 19,which at their lower ends are pivoted on the slide by means of the bolts20. By means of these rack bars, the head 12 may be supported in anydesired position.

above the slide. It may be disengaged any time by rocking the rack barsso that they disengage from the ends of the slots. It will be noted thatone of the shafts 13 is provided with a handle '21 by means of which itmay be rocked through the medium of the gear wheels 14 simultaneouslyoperating the other shafts.

What we claim as our invention is A meat holder for slicing machinescomprising a head having a plurality of rows of holes formed in its facearranged in pairs; a

lurality of shafts journaled in said head; intermeshing gears'on eachshaft whereby the shafts may be alternately oscillated in 1915, in thepresence of the two undersigned opposite directions; gripping prongssecured Witnesses.

to said shafts having arc-shaped outer ends HO\VARD STEPHENSON. adaptedto be protruded from the'holes of JOSEPH L. HOVARD. one row of each pairand to enter the holes \Vitnesses:

of the other row of each pair. J. Emv, MAYBEE,

Signed at Toronto this 2nd day of March E. P. HALL.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents.

Washington, D. O."

